Marc Ratcliffe

Age: 34
Business Est: 2000
Number of staff: 22
Growth: 19 per cent
Turnover: $2.5 million

AS MRWED Training and Assessment pushes its international boundaries with a long list of high-profile clients, founder Marc Ratcliffe plans to publish a book on training games by February next year.

The entrepreneur received a top 10 ranking in US-based Training Magazine’s Top Young Trainers list, as one of only two Australians to feature in the top 40.

“It’s a strong profile thing. I’d like to become the training games guy – out of all the people I speak to it’s what gets the most interest. Our view is to develop publications, get books out there,” says Ratcliffe.

“At this stage we’ve got lots of info that needs to be tidied up. We’d like to be out early next year, but the most important thing is to have it out by our first conference in February in San Diego.”

Ratcliffe’s business of ‘training the trainers’ has dealt with companies ranging from Rio Tinto to Virgin Blue, but more recently he has ventured abroad into less conventional markets to build his reputation and market.

“We went to the Goa Institute of Management in India. We’re starting to get recognition from people, which gives us a leaping pad, and if we get a good wrap then we walk through doors,”
he says.

“In September we worked with PNG Ports in Port Moresby. It’s all about training the trainers, empowering the supervisors and the leading hands to bring in the next group of people in the best way.

In Ratcliffe’s eyes an entrepreneur should not be ‘chasing pots of gold’ without a solid market and substance to back it up.

“The lesson I’ve learned is that you need to decide on substance rather than hope. It’s great to have hopes and dreams but if there’s nothing they’re connected to then it’s a lot of hot air.

“Obviously it’s more complicated, but looking at opportunities for what they are as opposed to finding reasons not to do it is probably the go.

“Most entrepreneurs are certainly risk takers, most people aren’t and that’s why there’s space for gains to be made.

“It’s not like you’re in a casino where the odds are in favour of the house – you’ve got calculated risk.”

He says a wise entrepreneur should be always learning, developing a range of clients and avoiding too much debt.

“I’m a bit of a control freak and I wouldn’t want to grow too quickly – we’ve seen enough examples of local Australian businesses that have moved rapidly into the dizzying heights and fallen just as quickly.”